With time expiring in the first half and Portland leading 63-39, Brandon Roy brings the ball upcourt, covered tightly by Baron Davis. Roy guards his left-handed dribble by squaring his shoulders parallel to the sideline against Davis. At about :09, Roy lowers his right shoulder into Baron’s chest. It’s not a forceful advance, and though Baron teeters before falling on his tuchus, the no-call is probably correct. Fred Jones moves over to pick up Roy on the drive. This leaves Travis Outlaw wide open along the arc to Roy’s right. Roy finds him there, but Outlaw’s 3PA is well short. No worries for Portland, though, because Roy is there to collect the miss and lay it up and in with :01.1. When DeAndre Jordan inbounds the ball to Baron, the horn sounds to end the half. Seconds later, as the siren tails off and the crowd rises from their seats, Baron heaves the ball 100 feet, well beyond the Clippers’ hoop. This isn’t a desperation, end-of-the-quarter Hail Mary. It’s an expression of pure disgust.

How bad is it today?

Here’s your first half highlight:

[1st, 3:03] The Clippers work it into Baron far off the left post against Steve Blake. As is the case whenever a Clipper gets the ball below the stripe, the Blazers send a double-team — this time it’s Joel Przybilla. Baron struggles against the trap, but manages to wiggle free and walk the tightrope along the baseline before firing a pass to Mardy Collins in the right corner. Collins slings it to Novak, who tries to keep the ball moving over to Gordon — only Novak’s intended pass to Gordon is deflected into the backcourt by Outlaw. Eric runs the ball down about 85 feet from the Clippers’ basket with :06 remaining the quarter. This is what the Saturday All-Star Skills Challenge should be: Can the contestant race the ball upcourt in six seconds against the defense, and convert a shot before the shot clock buzzer sounds? Eric, quite impressively, does just that: He beats Rudy Fernandez at halfcourt, meanwhile his teammates scatter along the perimeter for a possible kickout, but Eric keeps zipping toward the hole. Przybilla meets him in the painted area [which, at the Rose Garden, is paint-less], but Eric muscles his way to the rim. His layup at the buzzer just misses.

This is the first sign of vitality all afternoon for the Clippers. Gordon actually has a tough game. In what’s a reprise of the Clippers’ last meeting against Portland, Nate McMillan assigns his small forward, Nicolas Batum, to guard Eric, and again the Clipper rookie struggles. Batum’s combination of length and lateral quickness denies Eric both clean looks from the perimeter and open lanes to the hole. Gordon finishes the first half with 10 points on 4-11 FGA, 2-2 FTs, with a pair of turnovers. Eric’s final tally is a bit nicer-looking: 21 points on 56.7% TS, though the entire second half is temps d’ordures.

Without the services of Marcus Camby [can’t fly], Al Thronton [strained right arch], and Zach Randolph [psychosis], Mike Dunleavy starts Steve Novak in the frontcourt — initially opposite Joel Przybilla, then later against LaMarcus Aldridge. The results are predictable, as the Clippers get bullied in the paint. Aldridge records his season-high in points [28] in only 32 minutes of action. The Blazers’ distributors are able to find their bigs all afternoon with deep passes over the Clippers’ lilliputian defense, though the Clippers yield only 56 points in the paint today.

Again, the Clippers’ empower another opponent into the record book. Blazers’ point guard Steve Blake chalks up 14 assists in the first quarter, tying John Lucas for most in a single quarter. My favorite:

[1st, 4:46] The Blazers often take their time getting into their sets. Here, Blake swings it over to Roy up top on the left side. Przybilla gets a baseline screen from Aldridge, but Novak is able to run under the screen and front Przybilla on the block to deny the entry pass. Meanwhile, Aldridge flashes off the screen to the foul line, where he receives the pass from Roy. DeAndre Jordan steps out on Aldridge denying him the clean look. Fairly good defense here by an undermanned Clippers’ unit. With :12 left on the shot clock, Aldridge passes it out to Blake on the right side perimeter, and the Blazers’ reset. Aldridge sets a screen on Baron Davis. Blake, who isn’t the quickest of PGs, fakes as if he’s going to use the pick and drive left. This gets Aldridge’s man, Jordan, leaning right to pick up the switch — only Blake drives right, which fools everyone. Nicolas Batum is set up deep in the right corner. With Przybilla and Roy on the weak side, Batum’s man, Ricky Davis, is the only help available. Ricky collapses on Blake. Just as Blake elevates for a layup, he swings a backward two-handed pass over his head to Batum in the corner. Batum drains the 3PA.

Despite tying Lucas’ record, Blake doesn’t score a single point in the period.

In the fourth quarter, Ralph Lawler and Mike Smith recount the story of the Blazers’ rebuilding effort. Without a hint of irony, they discuss how the 2005-06 Blazers fired John Nash, then cleaned house, dumping some “bad character guys.” Referring to the c. 2004-2006 team, Ralph says, “People were ashamed of the Blazers…All of the sudden, there was such a bad taste in everybody’s mouth about this ballclub.”

same coach – same no heart veterans – same result!!! How embarrassing!!!

BoomDizzleisaClipper

gotta love that a big part of the resurrection of the blazers has to do with getting rid of two of the biggest parts of the current clippers, the worst coach in the nba, the dunce, and our very own sucker punching thug, zach randolph…god i hope we can learn from the blazers mistakes and get rid of those two

http://www.firedunleavy.com FireDunleavy.com

so true.

PBoy

I am use to seeing Clippers loose.

MichaelCage!

I have a sinking feeling that Dunleavy is now the new Elgin. He will have the job for life, which is about 23 years in Sterlingland. And Dunleavy is intent on creating the jailblazers outlaw team of his past; of which Baron, Ricky, and Zach are just the beginning. Not only will we be the worst team in the league for 23 years in a row, but our players will get arrested on a nightly basis, bringing shame and disgrace to the city of Angeles.

Stian

The dumb comments in this thread are disconcerting.

Did anybody forget that we beat these same Blazers in Portland last time when we were somewhat at full strength, with Z-Bo, with Camby, with Thornton?

Why are people getting all bent out of shape over this loss – or the Phoenix games for that matter – when we had none of those guys who constitute 3/5th of our starting line-up and are major pieces on offense (Zach, Al) and defense (Marcus) tonite?

Did you seriously expect a competitive game? If so – what would possess you to expect it to be close in the first place?

Would the Lakers be able to hang with San Antonio without Bynum, Gasol, Odom, and Ariza?

Dj

I think most of the guys on this board are just sick of losing by 20 seemingly every game.

Most of us seem to think that LOTS of things need to change for us to be successful. It seems like you think that Dunleavy and this group of guys when healthy, and minus Baron, can be a playoff team and make a run at a title. Am I right, or am I way off?

Stian

No, I certainly don’t think we will win a title with Dunleavy even if a lot of things go right. We don’t have enough talent/quite right mix of talent to go all the way, and we lack an all-star (which Gordon could grow into) who can take over when it counts the most.

What should be recognized though is that this team, when healthy, is as talented – if not more so – than the ’06 squad that made the playoffs. We have a better, deeper front court and a better SG. Thornton is a downgrade from Maggette but not by a ton.

THE biggest dropoff is from Cassell to Baron – and that is what’s killing this team first and foremost. Cassell ’06 on this team would fix most if not everything. That is the kind of PG we need for this team. Sam was not only an amazing player for us, he was also a leader who could rally the troops. Baron is a total joke compared to Cassell in every aspect. He can’t integrate himself into the scheme of things, he is physically wearing down and a step or two slower compared to last year, he can’t hit from anywhere on the court at better than 35%, he prides himself on not defending, he has the heart of the cowardly lion, and he is a total downer instead of inspiring the rest of the guys. PG is the most important position on any team (that doesn’t have Kobe or LeBron) and we have a total chump at the 1.

It is not a coincidence that we last made the playoffs when the team was led by the best PG the Clippers ever had. Baron is an absolute bust and the constitution of the team and our poor record are a direct reflection of Baron.

clippman

even at full strength the clipper veterans do not play with heart for the most part. just think of the potential they have if all played with the heart of Camby, Gordon, or Novak. your right about the potential but with a very WEAK leader they are like a ship without a rudder and you know what happens in that situation. weak leader = weak team!!

Dj

You have some excellent points. Cassell definitely “willed” the Clips to a lot of wins. The best part about him was that everyone knew in crunch time he’d show no fear and knock down a big shot when we needed it most. He was absolutely clutch, and by all accounts a great team leader.

The term is overused, but that team definitely had some swagger. That team worked hard, they got after it defensively, and they seemed to enjoy playing with each other. I remember watching a lot of preseason interviews with Cat and Sam and they were just seething with confidence.

There is no doubt that Baron cruising into the season fat and out of shape had an effect on this team. You’re 100% right about the point guard being the leader, and when your point guard is also your most talented player, HE sets an example for the entire team to follow.

In the first 10 games of the season we’d be able to tell if we could sneak up on the conference and grab the 8 seed. Instead we came out looking like a team who had never played with each other, and got blown out of the water a few times. From there it was quicksand. Same old same in Clippetown.

I think one thing you might be forgetting is how great Elton Brand was in 05-06. He averaged 25 and 10 on 52% FG shooting, and chipped in with 2.5 blocks and 1 steal. He was a stud for us. Probably a top 20 player in the league that year.

We’ve gone back and forth on Zach Randolph all year, but there is no comparison between him and the 05-06 Elton Brand. Brand was a legitimate star.

So Randolph is a downgrade, Thornton is a downgrade, and Baron is a downgrade. Ricky Davis is a downgrade from anyone, anywhere. Q and Singleton were really good defenders and much better role players than the Fred Jones and Brian Skinners of this current team. Tim Thomas can be a wash with Novak, just because I hate TT with a fiery passion. I just don’t see how this current group of guys can be considered deeper or more talented than that playoff team.

This group of guys, even if they could somehow magically all remain healthy, are still not good enough to win a title. They might not even be good enough to make the playoffs, especially considering Dunleavy is going to still be at the helm.

So what do you do when you are not contending for a title, and probably not even the playoffs?

You blow it up, rebuild and start over.

Agree or disagree?

MichaelCage!

Good breakdown Dj. I think Stian is a bit confused about the number of players with comparable skill level. On the surface it seems that this year’s Clippers team is much deeper because we’ve played all 12 guys this season at one point or another. Partly this was due to injuries, but mostly it’s because most of our players are fringe NBA players and wouldn’t crack the rotation of most other NBA squads.

You forgot to mention on that playoffs team we had a healthy Shaun Livingston coming off the bench and a motivated Radmanovic instead of TT. As much as we like Novak, Radmanovic is a more complete offensive player. Never mind Cassell, but Shaun can start over any of the PG in our current lineup. And even though I’m a big EJ fan, his skill set right now is comparable to Mobley in his prime.

Now losing games doesn’t disappoint me as much as how we lose games. When you play with no pride, no effort, and no passion, it’s an insult to the game and everyone who wasted two hours of their life watching it.

Lexicon Devil

The team started quitting on Dunleavy after he Phoenix series in ’06 and his subsequent treatment of Maggette. LONG before Baron or Zach Randolph arrived. Baron’s been a huge disappointment, but he’s not the problem. Yeah, Cassell and Brand were great…and they couldn’t wait to get out of here.

pete mack

Treatment of Maggette? He held him to a standard that he held other players…defend and play within the system. You think guys enjoyed playing with Corey?

TNT57

All I know is I’m making a killing betting against the Clippers. I now openly root for the opposing teams at Staples because i can’t stand a bunch of over paid, over hyped quitters. I’d like to punch Baron Davis in the face just see if would react. Marcus Camby has missed 4 games with a fucking ear ache. Are you kidding me? Kaman is going to come back 20 pounds heavier and completely out of shape. If I was Donald sterling I’d have these worthless wastes of space washing my cars and doing my laundry. Can you imagine paying these dead beats 100’s of millions of dollars for this garbage? I’d never sleep I’d be so angry. I WANT MY FUCKING MONEY BACK! 3000 dollars for seasons tickets to watch this crap? I enjoy the kids or the guys in their wheel chairs that play at halftime better than these clowns. In fact, maybe Baron and Camby and Zach should stand in the tunnel and watch those guys play in those chairs so they can see what real courage and heart and love for the game looks like. You guys are sickening. Shame on you.

Philip J

I’m not going to defend this team because, right now, they’re not worth it. I will say though, that Camby’s “earache” is probably much, much worse than you think it is. I had a reoccurring inner-ear infection a few years ago and it was just about the worst thing I’ve ever been through. The pain was so severe that I couldn’t even move. I was pretty much just reduced to curling up in the middle of the floor and wishing I was dead. I’m no wimp either — I once got a piece of metal stuck in my eye and drove myself to the hospital to get it removed — but that’s another story. I eventually had to have surgery to fix the ear and was out of work for three weeks. I tried playing tennis six weeks later, and my equilibrium was so far off I could barely serve. The spot where they cut through my skull for the surgery still hurts everyday. I really hope that Camby’s ear problems aren’t as severe as mine were, and that he won’t need surgery. But rest assured, if this guy, who’s been nothing but a trooper for us all year (well, since after preseason) is missing games because of a migraine and an earache, it’s probably legitimate.

Section 113

Reading Philip’s medical history was like having a piece of metal stuck in my eye.

Section 113

Reading Philip’s medical history was like having a piece of metal stuck into my eye.

benoit benjamin’s two left shoes

OK: How’s this. Sam I Am is not going to play for the Kings. So we boot Dunleavey up to GM office only, and hire Sam as interim coach for $200k. Give him a try-out. He’ll work cheap so Donald won’t be out too much extra jack.

Lexicon Devil

Do it!…

Philip J

As a cocky, loudmouth know-it-all, Sam was fun to watch as he’s a player leading a team that previously had no backbone. Put the same guy in a suit on the sideline and …I don’t know. I think he might quickly turn frustrated and belligerent. He was great for us in 05-06, but he gave up on the team pretty quickly last year too. He’s got swagger to spare, but I’m not sure if he’s really got heart.

I think there are better options than Dunleavy (provided someone else can keep convincing Sterling to pay for talent, which is Dunleavy’s biggest accomplishment), but personally I don’t think Sam is the right guy to lead this team on the sidelines.

Sam Mays

You simply can’t bring in players off losing teams and expect to win… There is a reason why these guys lose. Randolf has been a career loser of epic proportion. Ricky Davis, the same. Al Thornton is likewise shaping up to be a loser. Kaman is a loser. Baron Davis is a bigger dog than TJ Simers says. They lose because they don’t have the pride or courage to do what’s necessary to win, because they don’t want to give their all for fear that then there would be no way of rationalizing their failure. They wouldn’t be able to blame it on the coach, or injuries or the refs or bad luck.

Now they can say, “Yeah, we lost, but I ain’t into this team.” They protect their egos by not trying. Then they get traded to another loser and start all over.

The only way to build a winning team is by finding a winner… And you get that by stinking long enough utnil you get lucky in the draft; Kobe, LeBron, Duncan, Shaq (the young one), Roy and a handful of others… The only other way is to find a way to steal a winner (KG, Ray Allen) from a stupid GM.

They almost did it in 1988 with Manning, but got unlucky with Manning’s injury and further screwed by Sterling’s cheapness…

They need to dump this crew and really stink for a few years (could is possibly be worse?)… Then, maybe they’ll get lucky and find a franchise player.

Section 113

Reading Philip’s medical history (10/1) was like having a piece of metal stuck into my eye.

Philip J

Go for it.

TNT57

Have you guys ever watched Donald Sterling during a game? I have seat across from where he sits and I swear this guy is made of wax. He never claps or hits his feet on a great play. He sits with his arms folded and stares straight ahead. His wife is much more into it, but she doesn’t own the team. My point is we are fans. Donald is a businessman. He makes big money off this losing franchise. Mark Cuban is a fan. Dr. Buss is a fan. These guys actually care about winning. Donald cares about profit margins. He is not in this to win a championship. He just needs to keep it respectable enough so he doesn’t get kicked out of the league. This is why the Clippers will never win a title until Sterling dies or sells the team. Maybe if he croaks his wife will take over and we might see a difference.